Tagged: Country

Bihor, Romania. We spent the majority of the day lounging around and walking around the town. I wish that there was more to report about this day but it was just a day to kick back and relax. We had been traveling so much, it was mostly just sitting around.

Towards the end of the day we headed up to where the cows graze and start walking home on their own. It’s a real thing. The cows literally walk home on their own. We camped out on the mountain for a while and took amazing pictures while we soaked in the view…

…and from up here you could literally see for miles.

Romania has been such an adventure. We have seen the country side and the big city of Bucharest. We have been all over this country and have experienced so much culture and hospitality. It’s been so great thus far. We still have a few more days to go before we have to return home, and I’m excited to start planning a new trip for 2017.

We left Stei for Magura late this morning. Magura is a small farm town way out in the sticks in Romania. These small towns are vibrant with life and have so much hospitality. It’s farmland, though. So the people are out tending to their crops. It was beautiful and hot. Real hot.

The night before I had indulged a little with Uncle Traian. We drank two or three Romania beers apiece and with the combination of that, the strong coffee and the heat, I wasn’t feeling very well. We got to the farm and my stomach was in knots. And the first thing Alex’s family offered us was this delicious cheese bread meal that I was addicted to. Alex’s Mom makes it too, and I never, ever pass it up. I knew that if I ate some, I’d be having some serious issues and Alex had warned me before we came out to Romania that one place we’d be staying didn’t exactly have a modern bathroom. I didn’t care. I wanted to experience Romania and all that it had to offer. Including using a non-modern day bathroom.

After the cheese bread, I felt worse. But so far I felt as though it was worth it. I decided to lay down and drink some water to help lower my core body temperature. But what I really needed to do was use the bathroom. I layed down for an hour or so and it was time to go. You know, Mother Nature and gravity isn’t going to wait. I ventured out to the outhouse and opened the rustic wooden door. There was a long brick hallway that led to another smaller door. The sun was shining in like a beam of hope. Beyond that was the bathroom. I could hear the sounds of the flies. I looked back to where I came from and I was sort of panicked. Could I do this? I had my doubts. I thought back on my tour in Iraq and realized I had used the bathroom is far worse circumstances and made it through that just fine. I approached and saw a spider web with a pretty good sized spider scurrying back behind the toilet paper roll. My stomach lurched. It’s happening. I started to sweat and had to just go for it. There was no turning back now. I loosened my belt buckle and looked to my feet. It was time.

I closed my eyes and dreamt of white unicorns prancing over shiny, bright rainbows. White fluffy kittens danced around and mewed gently as they bounced around on white, cotton candy-like clouds. The air smelled of a strawberry/mango mixture. It was delightful. I dreamt of snow bunnies running around in fluffy snow at the bottom of the mountain. I could feel all my worries and stresses leaving my mind. It was peaceful now.

After I made my way back to the bedroom to lay down for a little while longer, Alex checked on me. I felt better and I sipped on water slowly. She thanked me for being a super-star and putting up with things like the outhouse. It seriously wasn’t an issue for me. I just wished I didn’t have to rush in there like I had to because it is sort of a culture shock. Anyone who enters an area like that would appreciate being able to take their time. My body was not cooperating like that. I got to experience such a thing and I will always remember something like that. I didn’t want to come off as one of those snobby, uptight individuals who was afraid to try new things the “old way” so I toughed it out. I think I made a point to myself to use the outhouse more often then I really needed to. And it was nice to be able to take my time in there and not be rushed by Mother Nature.

I think one thing that really helped me get through the day was this little guy…

..this is Bobee. He’s the resident farm dog and he’s absolutely the most cutest dog I’ve ever met. Seeing him made me miss my dog back home (who was in good hands with my parents, and I couldn’t thank them enough for them helping me out and watching her for two weeks), and he was so curious of me and was so loveable. If you petted his ears or petted his head, he was your friend for life. He hobbled along after us everywhere we went. And if you didn’t pet him right away he would latch onto your leg and beg for attention. How cute is that? He works hard, though and follows Alex’s Aunt everywhere she goes including out to the farm land. It’s really amazing the amount of loyalty these dogs have for their owners. Even though Romania has a stray dog problem, the dogs they do own are the most loveable and loyal dogs ever. And they eat very well, too. They get to eat all the left overs that we don’t eat.

For the better part of the day, I sat on the steps outside the bedroom underneath some honeysuckle vines and watched Alex’s Aunt peel peas from their pods. I offered to help but as their guest we were kind of forbidden to do any of the work on the farm. She sat there for a little over four or five hours peeling a huge bucket of peas and at the end of the day we all got to indulge in the fruits of her labor. We had this dish of peas in some kind of gravy or batter and it was absolutely delicious. All the food I’ve experienced in Romania has been awesome so far. I have yet to have one bad meal. And I think that’s why I passed on the Cow Stomach soup because I didn’t want to risk eating something I didn’t like.

We left the farm before dusk and I kind of regret not spending a full night there. We ended up spending the night at Alex and Ana’s house (Alex is the son of Alex’s Aunt who lives on the farm) and they live in this gorgeous home that they’ve been renovating for a while. Here’s the entry way:

It was a beautiful house and Alex did all the work himself. All their furniture was hand made and bought locally and it was absolutely stunning. We hooked them up with Netflix because they have a Smart Tv and it had the app on there for them to use. They just needed a paid subscription and since Netflix allows multiple accounts on one subscription, we thought it would be a great gift idea. Alex and Ana were thrilled to have it and we watched a few shows that night before bed.

This is where we slept. The couch kind of fold out into a bed:

The house was comfortable but this unusual heat in Romania had everyone sweating like crazy. The locals seemed to not mind it but stated that it was a little unusual to be this hot. Alex’s home seemed to be just right. As soon as the sun went down, we opened the windows and felt a nice, cool breeze come in and cool us off. And with Netflix, we were set for the night.

I grew up a Yankee fan, I favor Pitchers whenever possible, I am a stathead, and my dream job is to be a GM for an MLB franchise. In the summer, I go to MLB games and catch baseballs. In the winter, I write about what teams are doing to get better or worse. I try to be positive and unbiased in my writing, but that isn't always possible when evaluating teams truthfully.

I’m an Oakland Athletics Season Ticket holder and sit in Section 149 of the Right Field Bleachers. I love going to Major and Minor League baseball games and snagging balls, which I began to do in 2011. To date, I've snagged 165 Minor League Baseballs and 185 Major League Baseballs.

Thought processes and conversations started under the tilted cap of Tropicana Field. Someday everyone will know the Rays play in St. Petersburg, Florida, not TAMPA, or the fictitious city of TAMPA BAY.